Bathtub hoist



J. W. EATON BATHTUB HOIS'I Oct. 31, 19 67 INVENTOR JOHN WILLIAM EATON Filed Se ATTORNEYS.

United States Patent Ofifice 3,349,411 BATHTUB HOIST John William Eaton, 1403 N. 8th St., Garden City, Kans. 67846 Filed Sept. 23, 1966, Ser. No. 581,590 4 Claims. (Cl. 4-185) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A portable bathtub hoist for use in a standard bathtub and completely free of any connection with the bathtub and having means for raising and lowering a person into and out of the bath water.

The present invention is directed to a bathtub hoist unit which is adapted to be set into a standard size bathtub to facilitate the entry and exit of a handicapped or aged person into and out of the bathtub, as well as to raise and lower the person into and out of the bath water.

The prior art devices either aided the person in entering and leaving the tub or in lowering and raising the person into and out of the bath water, whereas the present invention has provided a device which combines both of these features into a single compact, unitary structure. The prior art devices involved heavy cumbersome apparatus which had to be fastened securely to the bathtub structure or other surrounding support structure by means of screws, bolts or the like. Such a construction rendered the' bathtub aid a part of the bathtub and precluded the use of the tub by nonhandicapped people in the conventional manner. Furthermore, the handicapped or aged person was restricted to using a single bathtub since the prior art devices were not readily portable.

The present invention provides a bathtub hoist which is of simple, compact, lightweight construction which is merely adapted to be set into a standard bathtub and does not require any securing means whatsoever. The device may be constructed of lightweight materials, such as aluminum or the like, to provide an extremely lightweight but strong and durable construction. The present invention is readily portable and may be taken with a person on a trip and used in any standard size bathtub.

Other features of the invention will be pointed out in the following description and claims and illustrated in the a companying drawings, which disclose, by way of example, the principles of the invention and the best mode which has been contemplated of applying those principles.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevational view of the hoist unit disposed in a bathtub which has been sectioned transverse to the length thereof;

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view of the hoist along the line 22 of FIGURE 1, and 4 FIGURE 3 is a top plan view of the hoist unit with portions broken away to expose the cable guiding mechanism.

The present invention is directed to a hoist adapted to be placed in a standard size bathtub for raising and lowering a person into and out of the bath water comprising frame means adapted to rest on and be supported by the bottom of said bathtub, flange meanssecured to one side of said frame means and adapted to overhang the edge of said tub, support means secured to said flange means and adapted to rest on the edge of said tub, seat means mounted for vertical movement Within said frame means, flexible means secured to said seat means, and winding means journaled in said frame and connected to said flexible means whereby said flexible means may be wound and unwound upon said winding means to raise and lower said seat means.

Turning now to FIGURE 1, a standard size bathtub 3,349,411 Patented Oct. 31, 1967 10 is shown in sectional view with the hoist mechanism of the present invention resting therein. The base of the hoist is substantially square-shaped and rests on a pair of spaced parallel support plates 14 which extend across the front and rear of the hoist. The bottom surfaces of the support plates 14 may be provided with anti-friction pad devices, not shown, which will prevent the hoist mechanism from sliding on the tub bottom and which will prevent the bottom surface of the tub from becoming chipped or scratched. An angular upright member 16 is provided at each end of the support plates 14 and are welded thereto. Three channel-like crossbars 12 extend between the uprights 16 along the sides and rear of the hoist mechanism adjacent the support plates 14. The cross bars 12 are welded to the uprights 16. Another channelshaped crossbar 18 is welded to the uprights 16 which extend upwardly from the rear base plate 14. A flat plate 20 is welded to the top edges of the two uprights 16 along one side of the hoist mechanism. Along the other side of the hoist mechanism a greatly enlarged fiat plate 22 is welded to the top of the uprights 16 and extends outwardly over the edge of the tub. The plate 22 forms a seat which will aid a person getting into or leaving the tub. The seat or plate 22 is supported by means of a pair of angular braces 24 welded to the uprights 16 and the undersurface of the plate 22. A pair of channel-shaped support members 26 are welded to the bottom surface of the plate 22 and depend downwardly therefrom into engagement with the fiat edge 28 of the tub 10.

A substantially square-shaped seat member 30 is provided to fit within the angled upright support members 16. The seat member 30- is secured to a pair of transverse crossbars 32 which protrude beyond the side edges of the seat member. The protruding portions of the crossbars 32 are provided with a pair of holes for the reception of a flexible member, such as a cable or the like. Four cables 34 are provided, one for each corner of the seat 30. One end of each cable 34 is secured to the protruding portion of the crossbars 32. A pulley 36 or a similar guide member is provided at the upper end of each of the support members 16 and the cable 34 extending upwardly from each corner of the seat member extends over the pulley member and is directed outwardly of the frame mechanism through a plurality of holes 39 formed in the rear surface of the upright supports 16.

A plate 38 having a gear reduction box 40' secured and depending therefrom is secured to the upper surface of the rear crossbar 18 by means of welding or the like. The plate 38 is supported in a horizontal position by means of angular braces 41 extending between the lower surface of the plate 38 and the upright support members 16. A shaft 42 is journaled in the gear box and extends parallel to the sides of the hoist mechanism in a front and rear direction. The shaft 42 is provided with a worm within the gear box 40 which is adapted to mesh with a complementary worm wheel secured to the transverse shaft 46 which is journaled in the gear box perpendicular to the shaft 42. The shaft 42 is provided at its outermost end with a crank member 44. A pair of pulleys or wind-up reels 48 are provided at each end of the shaft 46 adjacent the holes 39 in the upright support members 16. The shaft 46 is journaled for rotation in a pair of support brackets or bearings 50 secured to the transverse crossbar 18. The ends of the cables 34 which extend outwardly through the openings 39 may be secured by any suitable means to a respective pulley or wind-up reel 48. Thus, upon turning the crank 44 in opposite directions, the cables 34 will be either wound or unwound upon the reels 48 to raise and lower the seat member 30 within the framework of the hoist mechanism.

The seat member may be raised so as to be substantially level with the fixed seat member 22 which extends outwardly over the edge of the tub. The fixed seat portion 22 which sticks out over the side of the tube may be disposed at any suitable distance from the floor. In the present embodiment, the seat 22 is approximately 20 inches from the floor which is a very convenient height, enabling a person to either sit down on the seat or slide onto the seat from a wheelchair, a stool, or any other suitable means. While seated on the flange 22, the person may easily swing his legs over the upper edge of the tub and then slide along the flange 22 onto the seat 30. The crank 44 may be manipulated either by the person sitting on the seat 30 or by a second person outside the tub to lower the person seated on the hoist into the bath water with a minimum of effort. Any suitable gear ratio may be provided within the gear box 40. In the present embodiment, it was found that an 8 to 1 ratio was adequate for raising and lowering a person with ease. The hoist mechanism may be made from aluminum, fiber glass or stainless steel. The hoist of the present embodiment is made from aluminum and all the joints are welded. When aluminum is used to construct the hoist mechanism, the entire device will weigh approximately 28 pounds, thereby rendering the insertion and removal of the hoist mechanism to and from a tub a relatively easy matter. The entire hoist mechanism is relatively compact with no unwieldly protrusions, thereby enabling the hoist mechanism to be easily transported and stored when not in use. A main advantage of the present hoist mechanism lies in the fact that no attaching means whatsoever are required for securing the present mechanism to the tub. It is not necessary to utilize screws, bolts, clamps or the like which would require drilling of holes in the tub structure. Thus, the hoist of the present invention can quickly be inserted and removed from the tub, and since the hoist mechanism does not become an intergal part of the tub, the tub may be used in the conventional manner by simply lifting the hoist mechanism out of the tub.

Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in the light of the above teachings. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

What is claimed is:

1. A hoist adapted to be placed in a standard size bathtub for raising and lowering a person into and out of the bath water comprising, frame means positioned to rest on and be supported by the bottom of said bathtub, seat means mounted for vertical movement within said frame means, flexible means secured to said seat means and winding means journaled in said frame and connected to said flexible means whereby said flexible means may be wound and unwound upon said winding means to raise and lower said seat means and flange means defining a seat secured to one side of said frame means and arranged to overhang the edge of said tub, support means secured to said flange means and extending downwardly to rest on the edge of said tub.

2. A hoist as set forth in claim 1 wherein said flexible means is comprised of a plurality of cables secured to said seat means at spaced locations.

3. A hoist as set forth in claim 2 further comprising a plurality of guide means, an equal number to the number of cables provided, secured to said frame adjacent the top thereof and over which said cables are guided.

4. A hoist as set forth in claim 3 wherein said winding means is comprised of a horizontally disposed shaft having a plurality of reels thereon equal in number to the number of cables, gear reduction means mounted on said farine means and connected to said shaft and drive means connected to said gear reduction means to drive said winding means to raise and lower said seat means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,604,638 7/1952 Furry 4-185 2,754,523 7/1956 Bruckner 187-11 3,045,255 7/1962 Pirtle 4-185 FOREIGN PATENTS 399,969 2/ 1909 France.

EVON C. BLUNK, Primary Examiner.

H. C. HORNSBY, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A HOIST ADAPTED TO BE PLACED IN A STANDARD SIZE BATHTUB FOR RAISING AND LOWERING A PERSON INTO AND OUT OF THE BATH WATER COMPRISING, FRAME MEANS POSITIONED TO REST ON AND BE SUPPORTED BY THE BOTTOM OF SAID BATHTUB, SEAT MEANS MOUNTED FOR VERTICAL MOVEMENT WITHIN SAID FRAME MEANS, FLEXIBLE MEANS SECURED TO SAID SEAT MEANS AND WINDING MEANS JOURNALED IN SAID FRAME AND CONNECTED TO SAID FLEXIBLE MEANS WHEREBY SAID FLEXIBLE MEANS MAY BE WOUND AND UNWOUND UPON SAID WINDING MEANS TO RAISE AND LOWER SAID SEAT MEANS AND FLANGE MEANS DEFINING A SEAT SECURED TO ONE SIDE OF SAID FRAME MEANS AND ARRANGED TO OVERHANG THE EDGE OF SAID TUB, SUPPORT MEANS SECURED TO SAID FLANGE MEANS AND EXTENDING DOWNWARDLY TO REST ON THE EDGE OF SAID TUB. 